Word of God and the hearing of it.
1 EVermore be musing, reading, hearing, and talking of Gods word, and praying, that we may keepe the puritie of doctrine and a good conscience, to wade out of the iniquitie of the time, and to doe good as long as we may.
2 If you desire to heare the word with profit, obserue these things. Before you goe to Church humble your selfe in prayer to God, that he may prepare your vn∣derstanding* 1.1 * 1.2 and affection to learne, and memorie to retaine, and that the preacher may speake to your consciences. After in hearing with some short prayer, applie the se∣uerall threatnings, promises and instructions, to your owne estate: when you are come home from hearing, change all that you remember into a prayer, and desire God that* 1.3 you may remember it most, when you should practise it, and vse to teach others, and to* 1.4 conferre of all things remembred. And this is a good way to remember a thing, and the* 1.5 reason of it.
3 As the Lord doth feede poore prisoners, euen with a little foode, who though they* 1.6 desire more foo••e, can haue no more, and doe not refuse more ordinarie meanes; and the same God suffereth many to be pined, who hauing abundance, thinke themselues rather* 1.7 cloyed with the meanes, than nourished by Gods prouidence: so the Lord extraordina∣rily doth nourish the soules of them, who hauing few meanes, doe looke for the ordinarie meanes more plentifully: and suffereth some to rot in ignorance, who being at the full measure of the meanes, haue no reuerent regard of the necessitie of them. And hereof it commeth to passe, that some hungrie soules haue beene filled with more grace at one ser∣mon, than the proud, who hauing heard many sermons, are sent emptie away.